Legal costs widen RIM Q2 loss

From $7k to $8m

Common Topics

Lawsuits in Motion - sorry, Research in Motion - saw the cost of its litigation boost its first quarter loss from a mere $700,000 to $8.2 million, the company reported yesterday.

This time last year, it lost $10.7 million on revenues of $71.6 million. Q1 2003 revenues reached $104.5 million, an increase of 31.5 per cent. Its 11 cents a share loss this past quarter was slightly higher than First Call's Wall Street average of 9 cents a share.

RIM is currently suing NTP and Good Technology for alleged intellectual property violations. Last year, it pursued legal action against Palm and Handspring - both firms latter settled out of court. This quarter Microsoft and Symbian signed licensing deals with RIM, which contributed to its increased revenue.

So did an increase in subscribers to its wireless data service of 81,000, taking the total to 615,000. Two-thirds of the new subscribers signed up for higher-cost voice services.

Handhelds accounted for around half of RIM's revenue, services 37 per cent, software licences six per cent, and radios and other sources made up seven per cent.

Looking forward, RIM raised its forecast for Q2 from $95-105 million to $105-1115 million, and said it expects to take on 80,000-100,000 new subscribers during the quarter. ®